There was a hiccup in the £1.3 billion fizzy drinks merger between Britvic and AG Barr today when the companies asked for more time to iron out the terms.
The City Takeover Panel had given the parties until 5pm today to confirm the deal, but both sides said they needed longer, raising some eyebrows in the Square Mile and perhaps increasing the chances of a rival bid to that of the Irn Bru maker emerging.
Under the terms of the deal, shareholders in Britvic would own 63% of the combined company with Barr’s investors taking the rest. At issue seems to be confirmation of the cost savings that would flow from the tie-up and whether the name of the merged business is to be Britvic Barr or Barr Britvic.
The regulator has now extended the deadline to October 31.
